Green Mountain College Second in Nation in Sierra's "Coolest Schools" Rankings

POULTNEY, VT--For the second year in a row, Sierra magazine has placed Green Mountain College among the top schools in the country for environmental programming and operations. GMC is ranked second in the nation in the magazine's fifth annual "Coolest Schools" list, which recognizes colleges and universities for their efforts to address climate issues and operate sustainably.

The cover story in Sierra magazine's September/October issue cites Green Mountain College for its commitment to sustainability in several categories including energy efficiency, food, academics, purchasing, transportation, waste management, administration, and financial investments. It applauds GMC for achieving climate neutrality earlier this year through a combination of efficiency, large-scale adoption of clean energy, and purchase of local carbon offsets through the Central Vermont Public Service "Cow Power" program. Green Mountain College was Sierra's number one pick in 2010.

"Each year Sierra does an exhaustive evaluation of colleges and universities, from classes and curriculum, to the way they heat and power their campuses," said Paul Fonteyn, President of Green Mountain College. "To be among the top two schools in the country for two years running shows our continuing commitment to be more sustainable in our programs and operations."

Green Mountain College has attracted several other accolades for sustainability practices in recent months. In June, the College received the Second Nature Climate Leadership Award presented by the Climate Leadership Summit of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). Green Mountain also earned a Gold rating from the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), the most comprehensive and transparent framework for measuring the performance of individual colleges and universities.

According to a 2010 Princeton Review report, 64% of prospective college students take a university's commitment to environmental issues into consideration when deciding where to apply and enroll. Students care deeply about green issues and are attracted to institutions that are taking the initiative to solve environmental problems.

Sierra's complete 2011 rankings, with comprehensive descriptions of each school's environmental efforts, are available online. To learn more about what Green Mountain College is doing to make its campus more sustainable, visit here.